Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Squares

I have a pretty serious sweet tooth and LOVE dessert. If I'm in the mood for a treat but don't want to spend a bunch of time in the kitchen, I'll whip up a batch of Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Squares.



Now, this isn't Chris' favorite recipe; he actually groans when I make it. This and pasta were on the menu quite often when I was pregnant with Charlie and even though that was three years ago, I think he's had enough. He prefers something a little more gooey.... think brownies, cookies, Seven Layer Bars.

This is a recipe I've had since high school and got it from my best friend's mom. The first time I made it was at my best friend's house; her mom put out the ingredients for me and none of us realized until we were eating it that she put out powdered sugar instead of flour. I like sweet, but that was a bit too much!

When I made these tonight, I decided to try to "healthify" the recipe by substituting wheat flour for half of the white flour. The resulting squares were a little more dry than normal, but they crisped up quite nicely and I liked it.... so much that I ate two, no make that three squares! So much for staying on track today! lol

Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Squares

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup wheat flour (or additional 1/2 cup white flour)
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup oatmeal
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. While oven is heating, place stick of butter in 8x8 pan and pop the pan into the oven to melt the butter (and save you from having to wash an extra dish!). Once butter is melted, remove pan from oven and add all ingredients, except chocolate chips, to the pan. Mix with a fork. When ingredients are combined, add chocolate chips and mix. Press mixture with fork to flatten. Bake for 20 minutes or until lightly browned. Enjoy!

Linked up at The King's Court IV: What's Cooking Wednesday.